Forgotten Miracles, Nonexistent Promises
by Tokala wolf
Summary: Nai was always Karoku's favorite… Karoku's 'special child'. The innocent lovable, older brother. Shi was Karoku's 'miracle child'. The more mature, distant younger sister. Both loved and adored Karoku, who they were with ever since they could remember. But it was not to last, using the clues left behind, they go on their journey to find him. (OCxGareki, other pairings possible)
1. 1 Searching

**Hello everybody! ^^ Welcome to my Karneval Fanfic! A quick warning about this fanfic: it will have sporadic updates and not be updated as often as my other stories. It is not prioritized until after at least one of my other stories are finished. Until then it will be updated every so often or if I get major inspiration. A little note also about this fanfiction, if you take it at face value, I think you may just miss out on some fun little tidbits later on. (If I can pull it off of course.) =) I do not own anything in Karneval with the exception of my OC. **

**Please enjoy the first chapter! ^^**

The young boy laid in the green grassy field with his sister, feeling drowsy. He glanced at her form, his movements mirroring hers. As their eyes met, they understood each other, both sharing questions in that one look. They froze when they felt the breeze carry a small sound, something no one else but them could have heard. Mirroring each other once more, they looked up at the sky and reached up. Only they could hear it.

_"Nai, Shi, If I were…" _The breeze echoed their memory.

"Karoku… Where did you go..?"

"Nai… where are we going?" The younger girl asked, holding his hand tightly as they wandered the outskirts of a town. "Do you really think Karoku would have come through here?"

Nai glanced at the girl who was practically a reflection of him. The only honest differences between them (besides the obvious) was that her hair was longer and her body a bit more feminine than his own. It's not like Nai would know something like that though. To him, she was someone who always had to be by his side, as well as Karoku.

His precious "little sister".

"I don't know…but maybe we could find someone who knows where he is…" He replied to her, a bit uncertain.

The girl frowned at this and opened her mouth to say something, only to pause and stare at the figures in front of them.

"Well, well… Looks like we didn't have to go far to fulfill Mine-sama's wish." A man smirked, grabbing Nai and shoving him to the ground.

Another man was immediately behind his sister and grabbed her wrist. "And there's two of them, even better." He laughed cruelly before throwing her over to join her brother. "Tie them up, we're going back to the mansion."

The men with him wasted no time in doing so, roughing them up a bit and forcing them to walk down an unfamiliar path to a mansion.

Both siblings were exhausted and battered by the time they got there.

"Move it!" one man shouted, shoving them into a large room.

The girl whimpered softly as men grabbed her by her hair, forcing her head up. She could barely register that they had done the same to Nai.

"Oh my! They're both so adorable! But I don't remember asking for two… I only asked for a boy…" a woman exclaimed.

The men immediately threw compliments towards the woman. "Mine-sama you're even more beautiful than yesterday!"

"We thought you would appreciate having a pair for twice the fun! Look, they even look alike!" The men holding the siblings forced their heads up higher.

The woman called Mine only laughed, "You're right, thank you for you're hard work!"

One man tugged at Nai harshly while another mirrored his actions on his sister. "Your names!"

Nai struggled and shrunk back, "Na…Nai…" he only spared a glance at the younger girl by him, who struggled to scoot closer to him.

_"I want to see Karoku…"_

"Shi…" the girl murmured softly, eyes getting watery.

But their reactions did not deter Mine at all, it only made her squeal lightly. "Oh, they're both so cute and innocent!" She turned to the men and smiled, "For your reward I'll crush your enemies for you."

The men thanked her and assisted her in throwing Nai on the bed, chaining his hands, then tying Shi to the bedpost.

When they left, Mine was immediately upon Nai, smiling sweetly. "Don't be nervous! We'll play lots together…aren't you happy?"

Nai looked at Mine confused and uncomfortable. "This feels horrible…and you're heavy…"

"How am I horrible and heavy?!" Mine shouted, hitting him in the face, angered.

Shi stood up and struggled, seeing this. "Nai! Don't hurt Nai!"

The woman glared at the small girl, gripping Nai's wrist all the while. "Hah?!" She snapped before her attention was drawn to the choker around Shi's neck. "What is…?"

Mine looked down at Nai, noticing the bracelet around his wrist. "_They both have Circus ID's_?_ But that's impossible… They're both supposed to be orphans!"_ She looked closer at the bracelet on Nai's wrist, snapping the boy back to reality.

"Ah… That's Karoku's…" he told her, trying to pull his wrist back.

Mine looked at the bracelet seriously. "Did they find us…?"

Shi paid little attention to Mine's words, focusing more to the ceiling behind her. She could have sworn she heard someone up there.

Seconds later, a loud booming was heard from the far side of the mansion.

Mine glanced behind her in annoyance before getting up. "I'll be back to play more my cuties." She told the two sweetly before walking out the door, shutting it behind her.

Once the door clicked, Nai immediately got up and went to Shi. "Shi…" He looked her over worriedly before undoing the ropes keeping her to the post; her hands were still chained however.

Shi opened her mouth to thank him when another explosion above them happened, resulting in her hugging her brother close in an attempt to shield him from the debris falling.

From the hole in the ceiling, an older boy jumped down, his fall slowed by the cord until he could safely land on the floor. When he detached the cord, he lifted the goggles from his face, allowing them to lazily rest on the side of his head. His icy blue eyes turning to look at the twins.

Both twins couldn't help but stare at the boy, curious and in awe. But after a moment, Nai opened his mouth to speak. "Um..!"

The boy, however, merely walked past them and began sifting through Mine's things on her shelves. "Damn only junk…" he grumbled as he began tossing books and other little things once he deemed them so.

It was only after a few moments did Nai speak up. "Um…"

"What?" the black haired boy asked, still shifting through the shelves.

At this point, Nai lost his nerve, leaving Shi to ask softly. "Are you going outside..?"

"What?" The boy repeated, finally taking the time to look at the two.

"We want to get out too… but…" Shi held Nai's hand for support, keeping her eyes low to the floor.

After a few moments, the boy smirked, "Hm… you two have some interesting things."

Nai saw his line of sight and looked at his own bracelet then Shi's choker.

"I won't mind getting you out of here." The boy continued. "But only on one condition. You two give me that bracelet and choker."

Nai smiled happily, "Sure, but it's Karoku's, so if you ask him and he says it's okay, then you can have it."

Shi, on the other hand, was skeptical. "This…is Karoku's… I won't give it to you without his permission." As she spoke, she took a few steps back, causing Nai to look at her worriedly.

"Shi…He'll ask Karoku… we just have to go outside." Nai spoke to her gently, taking her hands in his again.

After a moment, Shi nodded slightly and looked at the dark haired boy. "Okay… only if you ask Karoku…"

At this, the boy smirked and took out his gun. "You two have got yourself a deal."

And with that, he shot their chains in half, needing only a shot each to break them.

"Are you with Circus?"

The three of them turned to see that Mine had returned.

"Damn, she's back." The dark haired boy muttered.

"No… you can't be with them," the woman continued. "You look more like you're of a petty thief maybe?"

At this the older boy raised his gun, pointing it square at Mine's chest.

"And what if I am?"

His question seemed to amuse her, as she smiled coyly.

"It's fine. Run away…" At this her whole body appeared to tremble, and her neck elongated as it moved in unnatural, disturbing motions. "Let's play a game of tag." She giggled, her voice even changing and becoming distorted to the shock of the three who watched.

Her skin turned a sickly gray and her arms elongated, snapping in certain places to create extra joints. "But I will catch you soon!" Mine laughed, her teeth now sharp and menacing.

The dark haired boy used both hands to aim his gun. "What the hell are you?!" He shouted, keeping his gaze directed onto her. But it was only after a few moments that he recognized how ill prepared he was to actually combat such a creature.

He turned to the twins and shouted at them. "Come on!" and began running to a corner of the wall.

Shi immediately began running after him, while Nai glanced at the transforming Mine for a moment before following close behind.

The boy pulled a small device out of his pocket, clicked it, and then threw it at the wall, making it explode to create a large enough hole for them to run through.

Nai swiftly grabbed Shi's hand as he kept pace with her and finally began running a little ahead, closer to the older boy they were following.

"What are we going to do..?" She asked as they turned the corner, her long hair whipping behind her.

The dark haired boy looked behind him to tell them to shut up and just follow him, but he caught sight of a man in a dark suit running after them.

"Damn. This way!" He shouted, abruptly turning a corner and running into a dimly lit room.

Nai ran quickly, holding Shi's hand tight and hid behind the boy, who happened to be hiding behind some wooden crates.

When the man finally caught up, he began shooting into the room.  
"Come out!"

The older boy wasted no time and shot out the lights.

Shi peeked over the boxes to see the man turn his attention to down the hall.

"Mine-sama! I've cornered the intruders in here!" He called out to the woman, who was chanting as she wandered forward.

Upon seeing her form, he paled and stared. "Mine-sama…?"

The woman smiled crudely and launched herself at him, using her long arm to grab him and pull him towards her.

The three of them watched the shadows play the scene out against the wall from behind the crates; the man's screams filling in the few blank spots the shadows were unable to tell them.

Finally, Mine walked into the doorway, carrying the man, now lifeless, under her arm.  
"Well…that didn't work out like I expected." She giggled cruelly, "I have to eat properly for me to have my speed."

Shi took in quiet, strained breaths as she watched, her brother just as pale as she.

_"What is she…?"_ The older boy thought, watching in shock as Mine lifted the dead man to her mouth and bit savagely into his neck.

It seemed like hours had passed before she finally dropped the bloody man to the floor.

"I said it was a game of tag, not hide and seek remember?" she sneered, looking into the dark room.

"You have to run around more!" With that, she threw her arms into the room, easily breaking the boxes inside.

But the moment she broke the boxes, the dark haired boy dashed to the side, reached into his coat and threw some detonating devices at her, allowing them to explode at her feet.

The woman screamed as the floor crumbled beneath her, falling to what they assumed was her doom.

However, the explosion was big enough to blow out the corner of the room, revealing the night sky above.

Nai looked up at him, perplexed. "Um…what happened to her…?" He turned to the boy, confused.

Shi semi-crawled to Nai's side and gently gripped the side of his sleeve, finally making eye contact with the dark haired boy.

The boy looked between the two of them, thinking.

Nai looked at him worriedly, "Umm…"

Finally, the boy extending his hand to them, to which Nai smiled happily and immediately took it, accepting the help to stand up.

"I'm Gareki. And you?" He asked

Nai responded eagerly. "Nai. I'm Nai."

Gareki finally turned to the younger sister, and extended a hand to her, smiling slightly. "And your name?"

To Shi, his smile was a bit unpleasant, like it wasn't a smile to comfort her. It seemed like he was smiling more to himself and whatever he was thinking. Shi looked down, refusing to meet his eyes or even take his hand.

"Shi…"

Gareki frowned slightly; this girl was going to be a bit more difficult to deal with than the boy.

Immediately Nai bent down and tilted his head. "Did you hurt yourself Shi? Are you okay?"

Shi shook her head and moved to stand up, but before she could do so, Gareki had reached down, and easily picked her up, holding her in his arms.

"This is your sister right?" He asked Nai, glancing to him.

Nai nodded a few times. "We're…twins." He explained meekly.

Shi squirmed in Gareki's arms, only for him to purposely pretend to nearly drop her then hold securely again.

"Just stay still and don't cause trouble, we'll be able to move faster this way." Gareki looked her in the eye as he spoke. _"If I let her run, she'll be too slow to keep up with me and Nai, she almost got us caught and killed earlier."_

Shi met his gaze without wavering,

"Don't lose Nai." She murmured before allowing him to carry her without too much a fuss.

As they quickly made their way down, Gareki had to keep reminding himself that he was carrying someone.

_"She hardly weighs anything. I could probably even pass her off to her brother and there wouldn't be too much of a problem… but if I did that then there's the possibility of losing both of them if we were to be caught…Better safe than sorry."_

Once they were finally on solid ground, Gareki picked up the pace.

"Hey don't fall behind!" He shouted to Nai over his shoulder.

Nai kept his pace behind him, not faltering when they turned the corner and ran down the alleyway.

Shi peeked over Gareki's arm, making sure Nai was behind them, her eyes showing the worry she wasn't completely able to show back at the mansion.

She then turned her crimson gaze to the boy carrying her, staring at him as if analyzing him. She couldn't help but think back to her dear person.

_"Karoku…Where did you go…?"_

_**Well didn't that make for a slightly tedious chapter? ANNNYYWAYS I hoped you enjoyed and look forward to chapter 2 ^^**_

_**Comments and constructive criticism is always welcome!**_

_**See you later! **_

_**~Tokala **_


	2. 2 Quickly Earned Dependency of Trust

**You all who may have just looked at this story are totally lucky I was watching Karneval today lol. I had a break from my work and chose to update this fairly new story here... I'm not abandoning anything I swear, it just take me a little bit to decently write up a good chapter. (I apologize for that...) ANYWAYS I do not own Karneval but I do own Shi ^^ please enjoy Chapter 2.**

Gareki peeked from behind one of the alleyway corners after he was sure they were a fair distance away from the mansion.

"The Security Force…? They're already making their move?"

Nai peeked out beside him, only for Gareki to push his head down and away from the edge. "What's…the security force…?"

The black haired boy just ignored him and turned, still carrying Shi. "Damn it!"

They did their best to avoid them, but they seemed to be everywhere, which ended up leaving them to hide out behind an old warehouse, panting softly.

"This is bad… Leaving town seems to be the only option now." Gareki spoke quietly. "But the town's exit gates must be closed already."

Shi watched both her brother and Gareki gasp for air, running tiring them out. And yet there she was, completely fine and being carried. She didn't like it and was about to open her mouth to say she could run when Gareki shushed her, hearing a train whistle.

Without much of an explanation, they ran to a bridge with tracks running beneath it.

"Nai, listen, when I give the signal, you jump off." He told him as he set Shi down and placed his goggles over his eyes.

Nai merely nodded.

"Shi, just stay close." Gareki added. It was much easier to keep the girl close than to give her instructions like he was doing to Nai.

Shi's expression didn't change except for the slightest hint of a frown, but other than that, she made no obvious sign of protest.

They all climbed to the top of the railing and waited for the train to pass.

After a few minutes, the train came by, passing under the bridge, just as planned.

Gareki looked to Nai, "Lets go!" he shouted before realizing that Nai's eyes were closed and he gripped the railing, trembling slightly.

He gritted his teeth at the sight and pulled Shi close by her arm. "Hang on to me while I grab your brother." He snapped, quickly grabbing Nai.

Shi clung tight to the older boys coat and pressed up to his side, following his motions easily.

It took them a bit longer to jump, causing them to land on the very last carriage. Shi immediately went closer to Nai, who was still sitting while Gareki stood up and watched as the town quickly receded into the background.

After a moment Gareki kicked down the top of one of the train ceilings, allowing them to get inside. Once there, he helped the twins remove the handcuffs, almost forgetting that they were actually still on their wrists.

Shi plopped down on the seat by the window, staring out blankly while Nai took his seat next to her. Gareki only sighed and sat across from them, unsure what to completely make of the situation.

"This can't be real… Why was the Lady of Karasuna a monster like that?" He asked absently before being interrupted by Nai.

"Umm…" the white haired boy relaxed into a smile. "Thank you for helping us."

Gareki looked at him for a moment before straightening up. "Why was she holding you two captive."

It was Shi who answered, "We were looking for Karoku and…"

The younger girl looked down at her lap, once more in her thoughts.

"What's this Karoku guy to you anyways?" the dark haired boy asked curiously.

"We've been with Karoku for a long time…But…" Nai lowered his eyes

"He didn't come and…it was lonely." Shi finished softly. "When we went to get him, there were lots of little puddles leading all the way to the ocean…"

Nai took Shi's hand and squeezed, as if trying to alleviate some of the loneliness the both felt because of Karoku's absence.

"That's where we found these…" Nai explained, showing his bracelet while Shi tenderly touched her choker.

"You both have a weird way of talking." Gareki said, raising an eyebrow at them. He turned his attention to Shi.

"I mean, wasn't that blood? Maybe he got involved in something and got himself abducted." The dark haired boy turned away, speaking like this should be obvious. "Or else, they dragged him to sea and just tossed him."

Shi abruptly stood up at the suggestion, her expression never changing.

Gareki met her gaze evenly. "I'm not saying it happened, it's a possibility." He told her in an off-handed manner. It wasn't his problem that they hadn't thought of this sooner.

Nai looked down at his bracelet. _"How long has it been since I've seen Karoku…?" _ he wondered, gently touching the red center of it.

Both Shi and Nai stiffened when they heard a ringing sound. However, they both reacted somewhat differently.

Nai cupped his hands to his ears and looked around, bewildered. Shi, on the other hand, slowly looked around, trying gauge where the sound was strongest.

"Hey, what are you two doing?" Gareki asked, already somewhat used to their strange tendencies.

Shi glanced at him for a moment. "There's a weird sound…"

"Sound? What are you talking about, everything is completely normal." Gareki sighed then looked around the carriage.

It didn't take long to notice they were the only passengers there.

The dark haired boy sighed and got up, walking towards the connecting carriage.

"Gareki, where are you going?" Nai asked apprehensively, leaning forward.

"Something's odd right? I'm going to check." Gareki grabbed Shi's arm and forced her to sit with Nai. "You two will just get in the way so just stay-"

Before he could finish, a man and girl broke through the top of the carriage, both wearing top hats. It took a second for Gareki to pull out his gun, but he was distracted by the fact that the two who had just dropped in had broken through without much effort.

That was all the man needed to knee him in the stomach.

"Gareki!" Nai cried and moved to get to his side, only for Shi to stop him, spreading her arms out to defend both Gareki and Nai.

The man merely looked at them. "Children like these serving as lookouts?"

The ruckus attracted even more men, however, they were dressed normally and pulled out guns.

It didn't take long for the man with a top hat and cane to somewhat understand. "If you three weren't with them, you should have told me." He sighed.

Gareki got to his knees, his shock making him recover quickly. "Come again?!"

The men aimed their guns, and Shi's hands had only dropped a little, making her the easiest target.

"Watch it!" Gareki snapped and pulled at her wrist, making her get down as they shot.

The other girl however, blocked the shots with her cape then tossed it away, revealing herself to be a beautiful blonde girl, not too much older than Gareki by her appearance.

The men were no match for the girl's speed and agility; she easily took them out with a few kicks and acrobatic stunts.

The man with a top hat walked towards the door. "Tsukumo, let's go."

The girl nodded and followed him through the door to the next carriage, to Nai's shock.

Gareki gritted his teeth and stood up slowly. "Damn it…" He growled.

"Gareki…" Shi slowly stood up, his gun in her hand. "This…" She held it out to him, to which he snatched it out of her small hands and placed it in his coat.

"Looks like we got aboard a train full of trouble." He told them. "Even so…who was that guy in black?"

As he spoke, the ringing sound occurred once more.

Nai and Shi's eyes met each other, _"That sound…"_

Shi listened and immediately walked towards the door where the man and girl walked through. Nai followed. "It's up front!"

Neither listened for Gareki's annoyed demands to wait.

The twins ran through the cars without stopping until they finally came to the door where it seemed the loudest.

"Over here!" Nai exclaimed as he pulled it open.

As they stood there, it took them a moment to realize there were many men in front of them, all with guns, now pointed directly at them.

"Who are you?! Where did you come from?!" one of them exclaimed.

"Crap!" Gareki pulled Shi and Nai to the side, using the seat for cover as they open fired.

Shi looked up in awe at the bullet hitting the wall; she could hear the voices at the front of the train car.

"That's enough, don't you think?" the voice of the man with the top hat spoke, sounding quite bored. "You'd better stop it."

The shooting then stopped, possibly because the man had chosen to speak now.

"It is only a sad, foolish act if you are causing this destruction to release your frustrations."

Shi would have listened more; if it weren't for the fact that Gareki had gotten up a little to be face to face with her. His cheeks tinged red for a moment before he quickly got up to peek at what was happening, pretending it never happened. Shi only blinked, slightly confused before following Gareki's lead and peeking to the side of the seat.

Nai also sat up, recovering and turned to peek over the seat, wanting to understand what was happening.

The three of them had recovered just in time to see the man in a top hat deflect a bullet with his cane, then blow at the men away with a mere swipe of his cane, sending them flying with a gust of wind across the other seats of the train car.

One of the men then pulled out a detonator and clicked it, causing one of the train cars to explode.

The man in the top hat immediately grabbed the one who clicked the detonator by the shirt and questioned him.

The man smirked, "The bombs we set in each carriage will explode one by one. If you stop the train, all of them will explode at once."

Gareki stared at the exchange, troubled. "Are you serious..?"

While the man kept talking, Shi had wandered back around the center of the car, listening to the ringing.

The man sighed and looked to the girl, called Tsukumo. "Tsukumo, see to the safety of these two. I will take care of the bombs."

"Yes, sir." Was her immediate reply.

The old looking man whom they had failed to notice was being held hostage earlier spoke, asking for the name of man in the top hat.

"I am the captain of airship two, Hirato, of the National Defense Agency, Circus." He spoke eloquently in his introduction.

"I am Tsukumo, combat personnel of airship two." The girl said, introducing herself with a short bow of her head.

The pink haired girl with the older man looked amazed, "So there are girls like you in Circus too?" She asked, a small smile on her face.

Tsukumo returned the smile in kind to answer her.

Once again, the ringing sounded out to Nai and Shi, both of whom had quickly grabbed onto either side of his arms and pulled him down.

"Hey!" Gareki looked at both twins in confusion before the explosion hit.

Shi was the one to speak first. "Sound…"

"Sound?"

Hirato pulled out a device and quickly read the multiple light-blue screens that popped up. "There is electrical interference." With that he closed his palm and the device dissipated.

"Tsukumo, the worst case scenario is to evacuate everyone and derail the train. There will be residential areas from here on. We have to make sure not to slow down."

As Hirato was giving orders to Tsukumo, Gareki was staring at Nai and Shi, who were both looking around curiously for the sound of the ringing. That's when it finally hit him.

"Hey! You four-eyed shithead!" he called out to Hirato, standing up. "There's still a chance! Get over here."

Hirato listened as Gareki turned to the twins. "Nai, Shi, where is the sound coming from?"

Immediately, both of them ran through the car to the next, pulling open the door and standing in the center, staring at the floor.

"Here." Nai spoke softly, pointing in front of him.

"Stand back." Hirato stepped forward and made a circular cut with his cane, revealing an electronic device in the floorboards.

"There it is!" Gareki exclaimed as he kneeled by it and began fiddling with it, rearranging wires and unscrewing certain areas with the tools he pulled out of his coat. "But this isn't a bomb, just an electric jammer. There are a bunch of fakes."

He put the screwdriver in his mouth, continued his work and his talking. " The base is made by ST, electrically ignited, the route to ignite the explosion is this. The electric detection device."

He ignored the blast and continued working on it. "This one is not connected with radio wave induction, it hasn't synchronized with the radio transmitter yet."

Shi knelt beside Gareki while Nai hung onto one of the seats, the explosions making them fearful.

Gareki just continued on, "The point is, we have to separate the back of the train before the radio waves reach it."

Hirato stepped forward. "That answer is worth trusting. Stand back, the three of you."

The three watched in awe and shock as Hirato gripped a sphere of light and elongated it, making it somewhat like a sword. "Vakuum"

With that, he swung it and easily cut off the back of the train in a clean motion, causing that piece to explode.

The rest of the train however, was unharmed.

Gareki sighed in relief and looked out at the sky, the sun was just beginning to rise…

When the train finally stopped in the afternoon, the three swiftly got off the train.

"Gareki, where are you going?" Nai asked softly.

"I'm taking off before the Security Force finds me." Gareki replied as he walked off.

However, Shi was at his heels with Nai close behind. "Gareki…" She softly grabbed his sleeve.

"What?"

"Thank you…"

Gareki looked at her confused. "Come again?"

"You saved us again." She explained softly, before smiling a little.

Gareki stared for a moment before facing towards the sea and looking at it for a moment before walking off, saying nothing to her remark.

At this, both Shi and Nai followed close behind, Nai staying close to Gareki and Shi, and Shi being more relaxed, her eyes going between Gareki and the direction they were walking in.

**aww... I think Nai and Shi are cute being so twinsy and attached already. ^^ **

**So What did you guys think? **

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Look forward to the next one!**

**Until then!**

**~Tokala**


	3. 3 Who is Leaving Who?

**whooooa look it's a new chapter! this one kinda just easily flowed out so I just typed...and typed... it was a slightly absentminded process...weird right? Anyways, I do not own Karneval but I do own Shi and all her adorable little antics. ^^**

**Please enjoy!**

They had walked for a while before they stopped to rest in an abandoned warehouse. Shi sat leaning against some blue sheets bundled together by one of the more broken windows while Nai sat directly across from her, holding his stomach. After a few moments of silence, Nai looked up and meekly told Gareki he was hungry.

"Why?" was Gareki's response, glancing at him, "It's not like you haven't eaten for a while…"

At his statement, his noticed both twins blankly staring at him, causing him to realize it.

"You two haven't had anything to eat?!" he snapped, bewildered at the odd pair.

They both shook their head at the same time.

Gareki clicked his tongue and cursed. "Fine, I'll go get you two something to eat."

He glared at both twins as he turned his back. "Don't go anywhere, understand?"

Once he left, Shi tenderly took of Nai's hands into her own. "Nai…" she spoke softly to him.

"Ah! Sorry Shi, is your head still hurting..?" the white haired boy asked her, turning to her worriedly.

The younger girl shook her head slowly, "Let's rest together…" she took her other hand and gently placed it on her brothers cheek.

At the mere suggestion of resting, Nai's eyes started drooping closed, not realizing his own desire to sleep until Shi had mentioned it. But before he could completely fall asleep, he laid down next to Shi, holding her hands in his for comfort.

Shi laid with him, her eyes watching his, despite her own eyes drooping closed as well.

Eventually, the twins fell into an uneasy slumber, their minds both focused on one person.

_It was like there was a dark haze clouding her vision, shadows trying to eat away at her. _

_And yet it was so clear…_

_Seeing the red water puddles coming from the place they stayed at, her brothers hand in hers as they stared curiously. Slowly they followed the little puddles all the way to the ocean, where there was more blood scattered everywhere. _

_Right by the shore, was a bracelet, which Nai had let go of her hand in order to pick up. Shi stared before spotting another one close by. When she had picked up that one, she realized it was too big to fit around her wrist, but after a bit, she figured she could wear it around her neck. _

_She glanced at her brother; staring at the bracelet he had picked up, then returned her gaze to the one she held in her hand, wondering what it was, and ultimately, where Karoku had gone._

_Finally, the black shadows won out, and streaked across her vision, leaving nothing but darkness._

Shi could feel herself being roughly shaken awake.

"Hey! HEY!" a familiar voice shouted.

Her eyes slowly opened, and it took all of 2 seconds to realize that something was wrong.

"Nai..?" She asked, paying no mind to the irritated Gareki in front of her. "Nai?"

Her breathing quickened, realizing he was nowhere to be seen, had he left her to go look for Karoku without her? She had never been separated from Nai before; they were always together. They always had to be together!

Gareki didn't have the patience to deal with her anxiety, so he grabbed her wrists and made her look at him. "Do you know where Nai is?"

Shi just shook her head, her eyes getting glassy as she tried not to cry.

This display was enough for Gareki to sigh and pull her up to her feet. "That brat… I'm going to kill him." He muttered.

"Hey, we're going to go look for him." He told the girl before turning around to walk off already.

Even though it was implied that she come along, the sight of him leaving was enough to throw herself at his back, cleaning to his coat. "Wait!" she cried out.

It was a first for Gareki to hear her voice be louder than barely audible, so he did as he was told and glanced over his shoulder.

"What? I said we're going to look for him, now hurry up." His tone was impatient and he continued walking forward.

This time, Shi followed quickly, keeping pace behind him for a time.

When they got to areas that had more people, her anxiety caused her walked closer to Gareki, occasionally getting on his nerves by treading on his heels every so often.

To remedy this, he made a grab for her wrist and placed her hand on his sleeve. "I'm getting tired of this… Just hang onto me and stay close, but not too close to the point where you keep stepping on me!" He snapped at her.

Shi nodded and gripped his sleeve. "Okay…" she looked at him and smiled a little, trusting him a little more since he was still looking out for her.

Eventually they came across a parade, so they had to wade through the sideline crowds.

Shi looked into the center and immediately saw him running past. "Nai!" she shouted, releasing Gareki's sleeve and running after him.

"Stu-!" Gareki immediately whirled around, feeling her touch disappear, and saw her running after her twin. He was going to shout at them to stop, but then he saw a man chasing after them.

"Damn!" He growled as he gave chase.

He almost missed the soft call of his name since his attention was so focused on the man in front of him. Gareki turned and saw the twins hiding in an alley.

When he walked into the alley, he immediately began snapping at Nai grumpily.

"You…you wandered off by yourself and got yourself chased?!" Gareki told him off, annoyed that he had to go after him in the first place.

After a few moments, he exhaled and relaxed, seeing the look on both of the twins faces and how tightly Shi was holding onto her older brothers hand.

After a moment, Gareki looked out at the parade still taking place, then turned his back on it, walking towards the other end of the alley.

"Let's go." He spoke shortly.

This time, it was Shi who led Nai as they followed him, more willing and relaxed around Gareki. Of course, this made Nai curious as to what had happened but happy nevertheless.

The sun was just setting when they had finally gotten to the center of town.

"Hey…Gareki..?" Nai spoke up after being snapped out of his thoughts.

"I was thinking…if we go to Circus…Maybe Karoku…" the white haired boy started.

"Not now," Gareki answered swiftly. "I have to find out who that man wa-"

He didn't get to finished what he said, as they hadn't noticed a man stepping out in front of Gareki and tazering him, making him collapse to the floor.

"Gareki!" Shi was the first to respond and run to him, with Nai close behind.

"Alright, I've incapacitated him." The man announced.

Another man stepped out and immediately grabbed Nai, easily picking him up despite his struggling. The other man who had initially tazered Gareki grabbed Shi by her arm, who struggled and desperately called for Gareki.

Both twins called his name, panicking and worried for him.

"These two are the one he wants." The man holding Nai said.

"What? So what do we do with this one?" The one holding Shi asked.

"Just kill him." Was his reply.

Shi struggled, reaching out for Gareki, actually wrenching out of the mans grip and throwing herself on top of Gareki as the man pulled a gun out his jacket and pointed it at him.

Nai struggled, reaching for them both, "Gareki! Shi!" he cried.

"Hey~! What are you guys doing?" A muted voice called out to them. "Using such a dangerous thing on innocent children…"

The men looked up to see a fancy looking yellow cat. Or…to be more accurate… A man in a fancy looking yellow cat costume.

"You're such bad guys." It called out.

The man changed the direction of his gun, now pointing it at the stranger. "Who the hell are you?!"

The two men didn't even wait for the man in the costume to answer, and just began shooting at him.

The man easily jumped up, dodging the bullets and reached into the basket he was carrying.

"Eat this! Candy Bars!" He shouted as he threw several at the men with amazing precision.

The man landed to the ground in a manner that was as if he was floating. "Why are you chasing these boys?" he asked, a hand on his hip in an intimidating manner (even if he was STILL in the cat costume).

"In any case, I can't just ignore such wicked deeds happening in front of me."

He threw his paws (err…hands?) out and began making sound affects. "Ba! Ba Ba!"

"Filled with the power of mans spirit! I'm the sparkling prince who makes your heart throb!"

Finally, the man threw the costume off, revealing messy blonde hair, blue-gray eyes and a mischievous smile. "The second ship fighter of the National Defense Organization, Circus, Yogi, is here!"

With that he raised the two rapiers in his hands, the guards on both covered in thorny vines.

With that they all stared in shock at the man, even Gareki had regained enough energy to turn a little to look at the man and somewhere along the lines, Nai had been released and had gone over to Gareki and Shi's side.

"Come, I will be you opponent." Yogi announced grandly, pointing one of his swords at the two men. "Which one will first….huh?"

The blonde man lowered his sword when he saw the men were running away.

"What the…?" He lifted his swords slightly and they disappeared, just like that, into small pieces of light.

"Phew… What a relief, I get so nervous when I fight…" The man sighed and began picking up his yellow cat costume. "Oh no, nyanperona got dirty…"

After a moment, Yogi went up to them and smiled in a friendly manner. "So, are you three okay?" he asked Nai, directing his attention mainly to him. Shi, on the other hand, was helping Gareki sit up at least.

"Listen, I was told to bring the three of you along with me." Yogi lifted up his hand and immediately a phone of some sort appeared in his hand. "So please follow me at once."

"U-Um! I want to ask you something!" Nai began.

Yogi looked at him, his face friendly. "Hm? One sec okay?" He placed the phone to his ear and turned his back.

"Gareki…?" Shi spoke to him softly, holding him be his upper arm despite it not helping him much.

Gareki glanced back at Yogi, "_Circus was looking for us…? What does that mean?"_ He thought

"Okay, lets go!" Yogi announced as he raised his hand to the sky. "Welcome to the Circus Ship!"

Yogi hesitated and looked at the three of them. "Hm…Hey, do you mind getting on my back?" he asked Shi, smiling.

Shi looked at him for a moment before shyly nodding once and climbing onto his back, gently wrapping her arms around his neck. After she was situated, Yogi easily picked up Nai and Gareki then flew up towards the ship.

Both twins were amazed by this, and looked around as they flew in awe. Nai was obviously having fun, while Shi was more reserved, but allowed herself a hint of a smile.

Yogi flew up into the ship happily, "I'm home!" he announced happily.

"Welcome back." Responded many short little lambs with top hats, they all carried some type of spear that somehow suited them adorably. "Welcome back."

The floated down gently, allowing Yogi to gently set down Gareki and Nai while Shi slid off his back.

"Answer, 'I'm home', okay?" he told them. Nai did it without hesitation, excitedly walking up to the sheep.

"I'm home!" he told them.

Shi followed close behind Nai, speaking quietly. "I-I'm home." She spoke quietly.

Yogi smiled "Louder." He told her then forced Gareki closer to one of the sheep. "you answer too."

Shi struggled, her voice a little louder. "I'm home!"

Gareki cringed a little and answered grudgingly. "I'm home…"

The horns of the sheep began to spin, "Voice recognition registration is completed." Its answered back in its squeaky voice.

Yogi smiled happily and led them down the halls of the ship.

Nai, who was excited and looking at everything kept up with Yogi easily.

Gareki, on the other hand, walked at his own pace. There was no way he was going to get caught up in someone else's pace. Shi stayed close to Gareki, clinging to his sleeve with one hand just like before in the crowds earlier. The dark haired boy said nothing about it, only registered her grip on his sleeve by glancing down at her, and allowing her to do so.

When they got to one of the further rooms, a man who looked quite familiar greeted them.

"I'm happy to see you all again. Gareki, Nai, Shi." He greeted them as they all sat down on the couch across from him.

The man looked at them all squarely, "Let me introduce myself again. I am with the Supreme National Defense Agency, Circus. My name is Hirato, captain of airship two."

Hirato crossed his legs and folded his hands on his lap as he continued. "I am one of the members who are in charge of eliminating crimes from this world. Though actually, our specialty is to pursue certain crimes, regular crimes are under the jurisdiction of the Security Force-."

"Um!" Nai immediately stood up and went of to Hirato. "Excuse me… is Karoku here?" he asked, the worry clear on his face.

Shi tensed at Nai's question and looked to the man in the top hat, waiting for his answer. She was just as desperate to find Karoku as Nai was, but she couldn't just interject the question into the conversation just yet, despite it constantly nagging at her since they got into the airship.

"Shi and I…we only found what we have, " Nai pushed up his sleeve to show his bracelet while Shi immediately got up to stand by her brother and lifted up her chin to show her choker. "And there was this crimson liquid- I mean, blood…"

Shi cut in, Nai's nervousness heightening her own. "Gareki said we should ask Circus since these belong to Circus…"

Hirato answer immediately, looking directly at the twins. "You've got it wrong." He stated flatly, earning a sad glance from Yogi.

"There is no one named Karoku among the members of Circus… That bracelet and choker are certainly circus ID's, but they are older models that should have been destroyed." He went on.

Nai's face fell and Shi looked away, trying to replace her disappointment with a blank look. Gareki noticed both the twins' reactions. Even though Nai was more obvious with his feelings, Shi seemed to have the habit of hiding her feelings or trying to be passive while trying to think through what she was being told.

It felt odd to Gareki for being able to relate more to the younger, female one between the two.

Hirato smirked slightly, seeing their expressions, "Depending on the cooperation of you two, however, we may be able to find some clues about that person, Karoku."

Immediately Shi took Nai's hand, "We will cooperate." Her voice was steady for once as Nai nodded his agreement.

Hirato smiled then finally turned his attention to Gareki. "By the way, Gareki, you know a woman named Mine, don't you?"

The black haired boy looked at him evenly, giving nothing away as he answered. "No, I don't."

At this the older man in the top hat couldn't help but chuckle. "I find it really adorable when young people act tough." He commented lightly, although the implication of what he was saying was more uncertain. "There's no need to be scared."

"Who are you calling scared-" Gareki began, obviously offended before Hirato interjected.

"We found traces of blast marks at Mine's house. Your skill of disposing of the bombs on the train was superb too." Hirato rested his face on the back of his hand, not even bothering to hide his amusement.

Caught, Gareki glared at Hirato as he continued to talk.

"Is it your way of showing consideration by choosing wealthy targets who had gotten their riches through ill-gotten gains?" Hirato asked, though he sounded like he already knew the answer. "I wonder why you need such a great sum of money."

At this, Hirato began chuckling a little at the sight of Gareki face, seeing as he was still trying to act tough and just let whatever the older man say pass without too much a care.

"Sorry, I have no intention of persecuting you." Hirato went on, a smile still on his face. "When you were in contact with Mine, did her blood splash on you?"

Instead of answering the question, Gareki asked his own. "What was that monster?"

"Varuga."

At the sound of the word, Shi instinctively stiffened then relaxed just as quickly. It was a strange word she was sure she had never heard before, but it still made her wary regardless.

"We are after the organization that have created those monsters for the sake of 'evolution'. If their blood gets into your body, you will become like Mine."

Hirato spoke his next words firmly, "We will examine the three of you. I regret to say you have no right to refuse."

Shi opened her mouth to say something, but instead Yogi stood up and began to complain about how the conversation was much too serious and Hirato was speaking weirdly again, to which Hirato only responded that he didn't realize Yogi was there before getting up and walking away.

"Oh, by the way Gareki." Hirato spoke over his shoulder, a smirk on his lips. "You did not kill Mine. Are you relieved?"

Gareki glared at him before looking down embarrassed at the older man's next words as he left. "You don't like killing, do you?"

After their talk, Yogi and the sheep showed the three to their room. Initially, Shi was supposed to have her own room since she was a girl, but she had vehemently refused and stubbornly clung to Nai, forcing them to share their room with her. However, she did have the option of switching to the other room whenever she wanted.

Nai was looking around happily while Shi stared out the window, seeing some blue light shine and fly away towards the town.

"Gareki…something was flying…" She informed as she leaned closer against the glass to have a better look.

At her statement, the black haired boy stood over her to look through the window as well.

"Speaking of which…the ship has landed…" he muttered softly, more to himself than to her then turned and walked to the door.

Nai stopped examining the room to look at Gareki curiously. "Gareki…?"

The moment Gareki's hand went to reach the doorknob; Yogi opened it, with Tsukumo beside him.

Yogi smiled, "What are you doing Gareki?"

"Going into town."

At this, Yogi panicked and pushed the younger boy back into the room by his shoulders.

"No no no no, it's so late!" he exclaimed, keeping a hold on his shoulders. "If you want to go shopping we have everything you need here! So you don't have to go out."

Gareki looked at him boredly, "Well there's nothing to do."

"Then let's play hide and seek!" Yogi shouted, trying to find every reason to keep Gareki on the ship.

"What? How old are you?" Gareki asked, still trying to get out of it.

"I'm 21 years old!" Yogi cried childishly, still hanging onto his shoulders.

"I'll be 'it'," a girlish voice said, making Gareki turn his attention to Tsukumo, who had been silent up until now. But ordinary people usually cannot keep up with me, so you don't have to play if you don't think you're up to the challenge."

Gareki narrowed his eyes at the implied challenge, and ultimately found himself agreeing.

Yogi smiled and turned to the closest sheep on hand and began winding something in its ribbon. "The time limit is one hour. Ready… set… go!"

Gareki ran in one direction, vaulting over the edge of one of the platforms while Yogi ran in another direction smiling happily. The twins looked at each other for a moment before realizing that they were supposed to be hiding.

Nai grabbed Shi's hand and led her down one of the halls. "We have to hide where we can't be found." He told her as if she didn't know.

In all honesty, they had both been told the rules a few moments ago, so what he knew, she knew already.

Eventually they came across an air vent, giving Nai an idea when he spotted it.

"Shi, in here." He told her as he pulled off the cover off.

Shi stared at it for a moment then looked at her twin. "You'll be behind me…right?"

His expression mirrored hers for a moment before smiling. "Yes."

With that affirmation, Shi nodded and crawled into the vent with Nai close behind.

After a while of crawling further in, Shi hesitated when she felt a breeze blow on her face.

"What's wrong..?" Nai asked, trying to see her.

"Let's hide somewhere else."

"Huh?"

At this, Shi turned to face him, their eyes meeting for a moment before the bottom of the vent gave out from beneath her.

"Shi!" Nai didn't even hesitate to reach out to her, but in the process of grabbing her hand, he fell out too.

The fall felt like forever, with them landing ungracefully and rolling in the dirt, yet somehow they still found a way to keep their hands linked together.

Shi winced and opened her eyes slightly, trying to assess any injuries on her or Nai.

"Whoa, I found red seeds…"

Finally, she looked above her, her eyes widening as she saw a tall figured with icy cold blue eyes and a cruel, sharp smile.

**annnd that's chapter 3 (a whole 10 pages on word... I feel so accomplished ^^)**

**I hope you enjoyed it! Comments and criticisms are always welcome. **

**See you all again! **

**~Tokala**


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